Ramblings and doodlings of an unsettled mind!

Fourth Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir drops another dirty bomb by announcing a new Opposition party would be formed by him, existing Opposition parties and individuals involved in the initial launch of the ‘Mahathir-Lim Kit Siang Declaration’ launched 4 March 2016.

KUALA LUMPUR: Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has announced that the group of political figures and NGOs behind the citizens’ declaration against Prime Minister Najib Razak will work together to oust the ruling Barisan Nasional government in the coming election.

He also said he would be one of the founding members of a new party that would join this coalition.
“We agree that we together will work to defeat BN in the coming general election,” Dr Mahathir told the media on Thursday (Jul 14).

“Even though we aren’t a political party, we represent a group of citizens of the opinion that the current Barisan government has taken actions detrimental to the country, specifically Najib.

“But all have agreed in any election, we will field only one candidate, maybe from any party … And all will support that one candidate.”

Dr Mahathir has been a vocal critic of Prime Minister Najib for some time, accusing him of financial mismanagement and misappropriating public funds.

It is unclear how the yet-to-be-named coalition will function in the current political landscape. The grouping currently consists of members of NGOs and individuals from parties already part of an opposition coalition – Pakatan Harapan.

But the leader of that coalition, Wan Azizah wan Ismail, was noticeably absent from Thursday’s meeting and news conference. Ms Wan Azizah is the wife of Anwar Ibrahim, the man Dr Mahathir has been accused of helping to put behind bars in the 1990s.
Dr Mahathir, who quit UMNO earlier this year, also said he would be a founding member of a new party that would be part of this coalition, as current parties may not “appeal” to everyone.

“I think there is a need for a new party to be formed to represent people who are not yet in the group but who wishes to have the same objectives as the group,” he said. “And when that is formed, that group just now (the new coalition) is willing to accept them as member of the group.”

Dr Mahathir added that he won’t contest the polls or position himself as a candidate for prime minister. When asked about who would be the new coalition’s candidate for prime minister, the 91-year-old said: “We will cross the bridge when we reach it.”

Dr Mahathir said his son, Mukhriz Mahathir, and former deputy prime minister and deputy president of UMNO Muhyiddin Yassin had expressed interest in joining the new party. However, they did not attend Thursday’s meeting.

There had been speculation Dr Mahathir would form a new party to be an alternative to UMNO – a political body exclusively for ethnic Malays. However, at the press conference, Dr Mahathir said this was still being decided on.

– CNA/ec

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The Straits Times story:

Mahathir Mohamad to launch party to challenge PM Najib

“We who oppose Najib cannot achieve victory unless we work together as a coalition,” said Dr Mahathir.

PUBLISHED3 HOURS AGOUPDATED1 HOUR AGO
KUALA LUMPUR (REUTERS) – Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Thursday (July 14) announced plans for a new party that would join an opposition alliance in a bid to oust the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition led by scandal-tainted Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Speculation had been rife over the past week that Dr Mahathir, 91, Malaysia’s longest serving prime minister, was planning to start a party with three other former leaders of the United Malay National Organisation (Umno) which Mr Najib now leads. “We who oppose Najib cannot achieve victory unless we work together as a coalition,” said Dr Mahathir.

He added that he would not contest the next general election, due to be held in 2018, or position himself as a candidate for prime minister.

Dr Mahathir has been critical of Mr Najib’s handling of the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal and called on him to resign.

He was coy when asked if the three former Umno leaders – Mr Muhyiddin Yassin, Mr Mukhriz Mahathir and Mr Shafie Apdal – would join him in the new party, saying only that he was “very open”to the idea.

Dr Mahathir said he and his colleagues had yet to decide if the new party would represent the Malay-Muslim majority or eschew racial lines. He also did not give a time frame for when the party will be formed.

Last month, Mr Najib announced an Umno Supreme Council’s decision to sack Mr Muhyiddin, who was then deputy president, and Dr Mahathir’s son, former Kedah Chief Minister Mukhriz, from the party.

Both have been tough critics of Mr Najib, calling for his resignation following allegations of graft and mismanagement at 1MDB.

Umno vice-president Shafie later quit the party in protest against his suspension pending an investigation into his conduct in questioning Mr Najib’s handling of 1MDB.

In February this year, Dr Mahathir quit Umno, saying it was seen as “supporting corruption” under Mr Najib’s leadership.

The Wall Street Journal has reported that global investigators believed more than US$1 billion (S$1.35 billion) entered Mr Najib’s personal bank accounts, much of it from 1MDB. None of the information publicly disclosed about the 1MDB investigations across the world has shown any connection between alleged misappropriation of money linked to 1MDB and the prime minister.

Mr Najib has denied any wrongdoing and Attorney-General Mohamed Apandi Ali cleared him in January of any corruption or criminal offences. He said that US$681 million, deposited into Mr Najib’s personal account in March 2013 before a general election, was a gift from a member of Saudi Arabia’s royal family and most of it was returned.

BN coasted to victory in two by-elections earlier this month.

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This would definitely be another political antic, which would eventually fail when the drive to work together in the ‘Unhholy-marriage-of-(in)convenience-between-backstabbing-strange-bedfellows’, is never about common drive for the rakyat or nation.

They are just interested to get power.

This lot in the past have been proven to fail so many times. Barisan Alternatif, Barisan Rakyat, Pakistan Rakyat and more recently, Pakatan Harapan, all failed.

This new party would be the third Opposition coalition since the ‘Political Tsunami’ as the result of post 12GE and the ‘Black April Declaration’ of Anwar Ibrahim’s legal qualification to run in politics (April 2008).

Even when they got their formula right like in Selangor, they did not use the mandate they got to bring the state into a better position. Instead, they dwindled into political backstabbing like the ‘Kajang Move’, which is nothing but to do a coup d’etat on a Menteri Besar for no valid reason but internal power struggle.

That was just within one party, which now severely fragmented with key personalities having deep distrust again each other. More over, when their Supreme Leader in serving time as a convicted criminal.

Now they are trying to make that work with a sworn nemesis. A man who was the enemy of every single individual in this delusional political hallucination, impaired by unknown obnoxious political narcotics.

That created the crave the greed for having a whiff of power by trying to sell this hair-brain scheme of ‘another Opposition party’. Not withstanding that they never got it right ever since classical Opposition parties (DAP and PAS) tried to ride on the dis-popularity of Dr Mahathir and BN upon the sacking of Anwar Ibrahim in 1998.

It is the right thing to do for Dr Mahathir to go on the political bandwagon properly, via a political organisation in his quest to topple Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd. Najib Tun Razak through the democratic process of ballot paper in the next GE.

However, what happened to the so called ‘1.27 million signatures collected’ for the Dr Mahathir-Lim Kit Siang declaration, launched 4 March 2016?

Even there were only 70,000 genuine signatures collected, is Dr Mahathir prepared to admit that they have been taken for a ride for a futile effort which had no tacit value which resulted Prime Minister Najib being ousted?

The past sixteen months, Dr Mahathir and his ANC tried too many political antics which failed but not at the expense of some people as collateral damage.

For example is the attempt to demonise Prime Minister Najib’s administration by falsely projecting that Tabung Haji funds are being utilised to “Bail out 1MDB through TRX”, slightly over a year ago. There were handful Hajj pilgrims about to get their opportunity to serve the fifth tenet of Islam summarily withdrew their savings, only to learn later that the story was a total manipulation.

The Fifth UMNO President tried so many political stunts to oust Prime Minister Najib. He instigated for the people to rise to express their dismay, engineered a ‘Task Force’ to be conveniently quick formed the moment foreign media publish an unsubstantiated story incriminating Prime Minister Najib, manipulated to get the Cabinet to revolt, instigated UMNO delegates to put pressure at party General Assembly and even attempted to get MPs to do a ‘Vote of no confidence in Parliament’.

All these failed miserably. He even suggested that foreign powers come and meddle into domestic politics, just to oust Prime Minister Najib.

The nation rightfully should be spared from pandering into more unproductive politicking. To the majority, it is already over bearing.

NST story:

New coalition is nothing but a ‘dangerous liaison’ based on frustrations – Rahman Dahlan

BY BERNAMA – 15 JULY 2016 @ 12:29 AM Facebook 4 Twitter Share 4

KUALA LUMPUR: Barisan Nasional (BN) describes the announcement of a new party made by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad as a healthy democratic process.

However, BN Strategic Communications Director Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan said it would only weaken the opposition further and strengthen the chances of BN to win big in the next general election.

“We will continue to rigorously fight for our principles and our struggle. We will defend our track record. “We have gone through worse and more formidable challenges before and Alhamdulillah, we managed to overcome each and every one of them,” he said in a statement here, today.

Dr Mahathir today announced that he would form a new party which will be a component of a new opposition pact in facing the 14th General Election.

The new opposition pact will also feature DAP, PKR and Parti Amanah Negara as its component parties. Abdul Rahman said BN would reach out to the public and tell them not to place their trust in a rickety coalition, driven by a man whose singular objective is to topple the current prime minister, by hook or by crook. He said the coalition partners have no common agenda for Malaysia.

“What they have is a “dangerous liaison” based on their acute frustration and failure to capture the imagination of the rakyat. BN intends to checkmate them every step of the way,” he added. He said: “BN will face anyone, anytime, anywhere for the future of this beloved country.” — BERNAMA

It is sinful to manipulate the hope and emotion of the rakyat at the expense of time, resources, energy and opportunities wasted pandering to all these unnecessary politicking, just to serve a man-possessed’s obsession for power madness.